The last time the Atlanta Hawks and the Chicago Bulls met, Al Horford was a man on a mission. The Hawks hope that a similar effort from Horford, coupled with a healthy Josh Smith will result in another win.
Horford's Hawks head to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bulls on Friday night at the United Center (8:00 p.m., SportSouth, 97.9 FM).
The last time these two teams met, Atlanta was down 14-0 right off of the bat and trailed by more than 20 before Horford carried the Hawks on his back and took them over the finish line. The Atlanta center tied a career high with 31 points in the contest, including the go-ahead slam with 29 seconds left to give the Hawks their first lead of the ballgame.
However, it's been all downhill since then for Atlanta, who has lost its last three games, including a 101-87 setback at the hands of the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday.
The Hawks may catch a break as the Bulls will likely be without Carlos Boozer for this one. Boozer sprained his left ankle in a violent collision with the Charlotte Bobcats' Kwame Brown. Brown was assessed a flagrant foul on the play, where the Chicago forward/center was knocked to the floor.
Look for Taj Gibson to get the start in Boozer's place. Unfortunately for the Hawks, will to deal with a healthy Derrick Rose, who is putting up MVP-caliber numbers this season.
Chicago hopes that the loss of Boozer will not slow down their team, which has won four straight overall and 17 of 18 at the United Center.
However, the Hawks have had a good amount of success against the Bulls, taking eight of nine in the series between the two teams.